


Save a Horse

by Booked_Painter



Category: Buzzfeed Unsolved (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Western, Angst, Blood and Violence, Distrust, Doubt, Fights, Guns, How Do I Tag, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Not Period Accurate, Shyan Exchange 2k19, Shyan Writing Events, Swearing, Western AU, Wild West AU, a lot of it, campfire talk, dumbasses to lovers, old west modern english
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-16
Updated: 2019-07-16
Packaged: 2020-06-29 13:02:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 14,822
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19830784
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Booked_Painter/pseuds/Booked_Painter
Summary: Contrary to popular belief, being a cowboy sucks. A cowboy on the run from the law? Even worse.Shane is an outlaw headed west not for the riches, but to escape his past. But when he meets a lone sheriff by the name of Ryan Bergara, his plans are thrown out the window as he's dragged into a whole slew of not-so new problems.





	1. The Meeting

**Author's Note:**

  * For [matterbaby](https://archiveofourown.org/users/matterbaby/gifts).



> This was my assignment for the Shyan Exchange 2k19 for matterbaby! I chose the prompt Cowboys!! Before you begin, I'd like to thank my beta readers (my QPP, my BFF, and my sibling, none of whom have any sort of social media they want me to attach here) for all their support!
> 
> Now, enjoy!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The outlaw meets the lawmaker

Contrary to popular belief, being a cowboy sucked. A cowboy on the run from the law? Even worse.

Shane had been riding aimlessly for days across an endless desert. His supplies were running thin and he did not look forward to having to eat a lizard. He could barely catch one! Maybe he shouldn't have skipped town so quickly without at least asking for directions first.

He squinted past the brim of his hat and up at the sky. The sun had long since passed noon and the temperature was cooling down. It would be his fourth night camping out in the desert since passing through that town, though it certainly felt like a lot longer than that. It's not that he wasn't used to life on the run, but he'd much rather get caught by the law than alone in the desert without supplies.

The air was dry and the sun was still shining brightly as he scanned the horizon. Nothing strange and no signs of life, just dusty earth and shrubs. There were a few distant mountains, obscured by clouds that sat few and far between in the clear blue sky. A tumbleweed bounded away ahead of him. Fitting.

He followed it with his eyes, until something else caught his attention. Movement. A glint of light in the distance.

Shane pulled on his reins, Norris whinnying in response. He shushed her, eyes never leaving where he saw that something- wait... someone? He didn't hear the sound of hooves at all, nor did he see any dust kicking up. It should've been obvious! He could berate himself later though, for now, he's going to have to assess the danger.

He squinted, focusing on the movement. It wasn't heading in his direction. That’s a win. So, he approached tentatively. Perhaps it’s a caravan heading to the nearest town. No, it was too small for that. A lone rider perhaps, just like him. Too slow for that too, unless they were out for a casual stroll. In the desert.

It’s a person.

It’s literally _just_ a person. No horse, no nothing and absolutely nobody in sight. How did this poor bastard end up here? He felt bad for them, but remembered the glint of light he saw earlier. He knew exactly what that meant. It’s a sheriff’s badge. He realized this the moment they seemed to notice him too. They raised their hand and began frantically waving. Okay, he definitely couldn’t leave this guy out in the desert.

He strode over, but Norris was apprehensive. Even she knew that this was a stupid idea, picking up a lost sheriff. But it was too late to turn back now.

"Howdy," Shane called out, slowing to a stop next to the man.

The man was short, small even, but he looked sturdy. Shane could see biceps and even his damn pecs through a sweat stained shirt and messed up overcoat. Now that he was paying attention, this sheriff actually looked like shit. His clothes were rumpled and covered in dust. He had a cut on his lip and dried blood trailing down his nose. He looked nothing like the dignified sheriff one expects around these parts.

“Thank fuck,” Ryan breathed out as the man on a horse slowed to a stop next to him. How long had he been walking? However long it was, he was getting nowhere, he needed this guy’s help.

Speaking of this guy, he looked up at them. Though slightly obscured by the shadow from the brim of his hat, he had a kind of big, gaunt face and pale white skin. Not the kind you’d expect someone out in the wilderness to have. He had long limbs, Ryan could already tell he was going to be a tall dude when he stepped off his horse. Around his neck was a bandana and he was wearing a vest.

"You uh, alright there sheriff?" Shane continued, eyeing the badge still determinedly jammed onto his chest.

The sheriff actually wheezed out a laugh at that, followed by a cough. "This look alright to you, partner?"

"I mean," Shane smiled in what he hoped was a friendly manner, "I ain't one to make assumptions 'bout other people. Maybe you're what passes as hot shit 'round these parts."

He rolled his eyes and Shane couldn't tell which one of them the heat was getting to, 'cause he thought he saw the damn sheriff blush.

Shane dismounted from Norris and began rummaging through her saddlebag. The sheriff watched him, as he pulled out his canteen of water.

Ryan was right, this dude was taller than him by a whole head. The guy turned around and handed him a canteen, “you probably need this.”

“Oh shit, thanks.” He couldn’t help himself as he took a few sips. “Thank you. Really.”

“Hey it’s all good.” Shane responded. This guy must’ve been out here for a while, damn. He wondered for how long exactly, as he watched the other’s adam’s apple bob again and again-

Then, he felt a rush of air as his hat was swept off his head. “What-”  
  
Ryan watched as this dude’s horse ripped his hat off his head, dropped it on the ground and proceeded to step on it. Multiple times. He briefly thought it was a hallucination from his dehydration but no.

“What the fuck? Norris!” He shouted, turning around to pick his hat up off the ground and dust it off. Norris, the horse apparently, neighed and nipped at the guy’s face. “Stop!”  
  
The sheriff laughed behind him. Really, it was more of a wheeze but maybe that was because he was tired. Shane felt his cheeks turn red, it was surprisingly pleasant to listen to. “Your horse do this often?”  
  
“No,” he answered, not turning around. Was it because he was a sheriff that she was being protective? Or maybe it was because he gave the guy his water. He looked back down at his rumpled hat and sighed. He put it back on and heard the sheriff hold in laughter.

"You ain't from around these parts, huh? I think I would've noticed a noggin' as big as yours." Ryan held the canteen out and stood a little straighter, making sure to show off his badge more. Hopefully it would deter this guy from messing with him. He seemed nice enough, but you couldn’t be too careful.

Shane chuckled nervously, eyeing said badge while taking his canteen back. "No sir, I’m uh- I’m actually from a little ways up north. Just haven’t been 'round here before."

"No wonder. You're way off the main trail. I can help you back to town if you take me." Ryan really shouldn’t trust this guy, but it was either him or probably dying from exposure.

"Hell, I wasn't gonna just leave you out here. C'mon up, sheriff." Shane mounted his horse and outstretched his hand, but the sheriff looked at it suspiciously.

“You happen to have any weapons on you?” Ryan asked skeptically. It was unlikely that he'd answer that, but it never hurt to ask. “I don’t have anythin’ worth stealing if you wanted to know.”

“Would you believe me if I said I didn’t?” He had a gun, hidden away in Norris’s saddlebag, but this guy didn’t need to know.

“No, but I’m gonna pretend you said yes.” He finally took it. Shane gripped his hand and helped him clamber up onto Norris's back. She whinnied at the extra weight.

Shane shushed her, "So, where are we headed?"

"Southwest from here, so, that a way." Ryan gripped the guy’s shoulder with one hand and pointed towards the setting sun with the other. "I don't think we'll make it 'fore sundown though."

"As long as it ain't any longer than a day's ride. I don't wanna hurt Norris here." They proceeded in the direction the sheriff pointed out in silence. Though, curiosity got the better of Shane. “What’s a sheriff doing so far out in the middle of nowhere anyways? You the sheriff of nowhere, is that it?”  
  
Ryan rolled his eyes and didn’t respond. He wasn’t in the mood for small talk and he wasn’t planning on telling this guy anything. The sound of trotting filled the rapidly cooling air around them. He was right, they'd have to stop before continuing in the morning.

And they did. The sun had set and the road ahead of them disappeared into the night. With help from the moonlight above them, Shane spotted a patch of sand with brush around it. There was a darker patch in the middle, signalling someone else might have camped out here before.

Shane slowed Norris to a stop, so the sheriff tried to peek over his taller shoulders. “What’s up?”

“I think we should stop here tonight.” He ran his hands through Norris’s mane and she whinnied in response. Then, he hopped off of her. With his absence, the sheriff slid forwards to the middle of the saddle. Frankly, it looked pretty darn cute.

Ryan hopped off as well and surveyed their surroundings. “Yeah, that sounds good.”

They began setting up camp. Shane tied Norris to a nearby tree and gathered some dry brush in a pile in the middle of the clearing where there were already signs of a pit. He’d lost his tinder box along the trail a while ago. As he looked around for some sticks to start said fire, the sheriff pulled out a lighter.

“Huh, nice,” he commented idly and the sheriff smiled.

“Thanks.” The compliment (was it a compliment?) caught him off guard and he crouched down to light the brush. He felt blood rush to his face, that’s the second time it’s happened with this guy. If it wasn’t so dark he might’ve noticed the blush on the other’s face as well.

He lit the fire and blew on it a few times to really get it going. Shane did find a stick and he tried to help stoke the fire. Soon, a warm glow illuminated them and their surroundings. Shane was glad to no longer be in pitch black. He looked towards the sheriff who sat down next to the fire, arms outstretched and his hat placed next to him.

Shane went to Norris to grab some dinner for them from her saddlebags. They were nearing empty, but if the sheriff was right, then he wouldn’t need to worry about that when they got to the town. Just some biscuits and bacon left. He would save some for himself if the sheriff didn’t look so damn miserable.

“How are you feelin’?” He asked, moving to sit down next to the man. He handed over the food, which the sheriff took gratefully.

“You sure about this?” Ryan asked, eyeing the bread suspiciously. The guy shrugged.

“I still have some for myself,” Shane lied. “So, how are you?”

“Better,” the sheriff responded, digging into his dinner messily. Then, he turned to face Shane, bits of food having somehow made their way to his cheek. He briefly wondered how long it’d been since the guy last ate.

“Anyways, am I ever going to find out the name of my hero?” Ryan continued, raising an eyebrow curiously.

Fuck. “Oh, I’m uh- I’m M-McClintock. Banjo McClintock.” He berated himself for sounding so unsure. He almost gave away his real life actual name to a fucking sheriff just because the man looked so _sincere_.

“Well McClintock, I’m Sheriff Richard Goldsworth. Friends call me Ricky.” Ryan grinned. It may sound silly, but he’d always wanted to use a fake name and he’d had that one in his head for forever. Honestly, it felt exciting.

McClintock raised an eyebrow at that, “am I a friend?”  
  
“We’ll see.” Ricky looked back towards the fire. The warm glow of it showed off his tired features and- oh. Finally in the light and this close, McClintock realized just how fucked up this dude really was. What he thought was just a really sweaty and dirty shirt was blood. Not a lot to have stained his white too dark, but it was there. He also noticed cuts and bruises all over the other man’s body, some looked terribly purple but the cuts didn’t look deep.

“Oh, shit. Sheriff you don’t look too good.”

“Thanks, I didn’t notice,” he responded sarcastically.

McClintock sighed, he got up and walked to Norris again. He began digging through the saddlebag for anything he had that could help. He grabbed his canteen of water and a bottle of scotch he’d been saving up. He also grabbed some blankets he’d packed away. When he realized he didn’t have any spare cloth, he resolved to hand his bandana to the poor guy.

When Ricky saw what he had in his hands, he looked guilty. “I don’t need your charity.”  
  
“Well, I’m giving it anyways.” McClintock placed the blankets on the ground beneath them and took his bandana off. He took a drink of his canteen and handed it to Ricky. “I still don’t know what happened to ya, but it fucked you up good.”

Ricky drank from the canteen and handed it back. McClintock placed it next to them.

“Take off your shirt,” McClintock ordered.

“What?”

“I’m gonna help you clean up those wounds, man. You look like you’re a step away from death’s door.” He was exaggerating, but he did want to help this guy out.

Ricky opened his mouth to argue, but he seemed to realize that he was about to fight a losing battle. He sighed and pulled his shirt over his head- oh damn. There was bruising all over his back, with scratches scattered around his arms. There were also a few spots across his chest.

McClintock took a deep breath and decided to focus on his back first. He folded his legs and motioned for Ricky to turn around. “I’m gonna need to take a look at your back.”

“I swear if you stab me…” He left the sentence incomplete, but complied anyways. Now fully facing his back, McClintock could see that his muscular figure was completely covered in purple bruises and small cuts; they marred the landscape one could say.

McClintock shook the thought out of his head as he poured water onto his bandana. He held it out to the fire to warm it up a bit, before placing it on Ricky’s back. The other hissed in pain. McClintock sighed, “what happened to you?”

“You’re going to laugh at me.”  
  
“No offence, I probably will. But I’d still like to know.”

That made Ricky laugh before hissing again in pain when McClintock continued to clean his back. “Well, alright. You’ve noticed I’m a sheriff already. The town near here, the one we’re heading to, it’s where I’m from.”

“It’s a small place. But we’ve been harassed by these gangsters for a while,” Ricky continued. He was tired and mildly frustrated and this guy was letting him talk. (He should shut up.)

“So you thought you could take care of this problem yourself?” The guy sounded like he was either impressed, or thought Ricky was an idiot. Maybe a bit of both. (Probably the latter.)

“Well, I knew I couldn’t. I was just, so sick and tired of it already. Just couldn’t sit still and wait for the next attack, y’know?” He sighed, “I’m actually a new sheriff in town ‘cause the old one didn’t want to do shit about them, so I stepped up.”  
  
“A man of the people, I see.”  
  
He laughed, “yeah, I know I shouldn’t have. But I did. And well, now we’re here.”

McClintock hummed an affirmative in response. “I’d like to know _how_ you got these though.”

“Okay, you’re definitely gonna laugh.”

“I will.”  
  
“I uh, found the gangsters. Well really, they found me. They caught me unaware and scared my horse. Scared her so good she reared up and threw me off.”

McClintock laughed.

“Then the uh, they ganged up on me and left me out to die. That was yesterday evening I reckon.”

He stopped laughing.

They’re left with an awkward silence as McClintock finished up with cleaning and disinfecting Ricky’s back. Occasionally his fingers would brush across the marred expanse and they’d feel like they were on fire. Perhaps Ricky was coming up with a fever, yes, that’s definitely it. He ignored it in favor of helping the other.

Once he was satisfied with his work, he felt a pang of guilt for not having anything to dress the wounds with. But Ricky would survive. Then, remembered the scratches across the other’s arms and tapped his shoulder. “Turn around for me, will ya?”

He complied and their knees bumped together. He extended an open palm to Ricky. He placed his hand over it. With the light from the fire, he saw that the cuts weren’t deep, but they bled and McClintock worried about an infection.

“These don’t hurt that much y’know.” Ricky complained quietly into their shared space. McClintock simply ignored him, pouring water onto his bandana and wiping away at the dried blood on his arms.

“Sure, if you want to walk into town looking like you had you were elbow deep into someone’s gut that’s on you.” He continued to clean the dried blood. He was definitely exaggerating; it looked nothing like that. But it made Ricky smile.

Once his arm was clean, he grabbed the scotch and poured some over the cuts. Ricky hissed at that and flinched. But McClintock had a good grip on his arm and pulled it back. They were silent as McClintock continued to clean up his other arm as well.

Once both arms were cleaned. He looked up to see Ricky… pouting. It’s reminiscent of a kid and it made him laugh. “What’s wrong sheriff?”

“I just- I hate feeling weak,” Ricky answered truthfully, averting his eyes. McClintock was so stunned by the honesty that it took him a moment to recover and think of a response.

“Well, you don't have to be a strong sheriff all the time. Sometimes, being an alive sheriff is enough.” Ricky rolled his eyes and McClintock saw red creep across his face.

Then, he actually _looked_ at the other’s face. He isn’t sure how he missed it in broad daylight, maybe it was the shadows from the other’s hat that covered it up. His face was a mess. His hair slick with sweat stuck to his forehead. Dried blood wasn’t just under his nose, but across his cheeks, as well as around the split lip he’d noticed earlier. Maybe there were even cuts under all that blood, but he couldn’t see them through the sand and dust stuck to it.

Without realizing, McClintock’s hand moved on it’s own. He placed the damp bandana on Ricky’s cheek. Instinctively, Ricky’s hand shot up to grab his in self-defense. But then, he left it there as McClintock wiped away the blood and dust.

“McClintock,” Ricky growled out, biting back any other noise trying to escape his mouth. McClintock barely registered it as his name, all he heard was the other man’s voice dropped a few octaves.

Whatever the whisper of his name was supposed to mean, Ricky didn’t follow through and left McClintock to clean the rest of his face. No longer bloodied, McClintock paid close attention to the sheriff’s soft cheeks, roughened by a stubble. His eyes were closed and his mouth slightly agape.

Suddenly, they’re shaken out of the reverie by Ricky physically shivering.

“Oh fuck it’s cold.” Ricky pulled away from the other, leaving their shared space.

McClintock picked up the blanket beneath them and draped it around Ricky’s shoulders. “You should leave your shirt out to dry first, it’s still covered in your sweat.”

Ricky sighed and scooted closer to the fire. It was definitely cold, how did he not notice? He wrapped a blanket around himself and lied down facing up towards the heavens. The moon was almost full and stars sprinkled the milky expanse.

He looked back towards Ricky, who was no longer shivering. He briefly wondered what the moment that had passed meant. But he just as quickly shot it down. They were both tired, weren’t they? He faced away from the sheriff. Some shut eye would help them both feel better in the morning, yeah.


	2. The Town

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ricky and McClintock make it to town, but not everything is as it seems

The sun rose over the desert, banishing the freezing cold of the night and replacing it with warmth. But the comfortable temperature would be replaced by burning heat soon enough. McClintock awoke to Ricky already up and staring at the burning smolders of their dying fire. He looked a lot better with the rest.

“We should head out, McClintock.” Ricky had folded his blanket, and was already wearing his shirt and overcoat again. His hat placed securely on his head and badge gleaming in the morning light.

McClintock simply hummed in response, getting up and dusting himself off. Ricky cleaned the pit, kicking sand over it to cover their tracks. McClintock packed their blankets and all the equipment he’d taken out last night back into Norris’s saddlebags. He looked at his bloodsoaked bandana and seemed to mull something over, before dropping it onto the ground and burying it with some sand. Ricky looked away out of respect.

Once their campsite was empty and cleared out, McClintock climbed up onto Norris’s back. Ricky followed after, climbing on behind him. “When d’you think we’ll get there?”  
  
Ricky thought for a moment, “if we’re lucky, before noon.”

They continued on their journey southwest wordlessly. Everything that happened that night seemed to hang in the air, but they both ignored it completely.

As the sun continued to rise, the temperature rose with it. Then, they finally reached town. It was small, with only one main road that practically connected everything. Even then, a small town wouldn’t be completely deserted like this.

Ricky also looked confused and was scanning the area warily. They rode in the middle of the empty road, the sound of hooves reverberated as if there were nothing at all around them. Not a single soul stirred at their arrival.

“Hey, stop at the inn,” Ricky said, pointing towards a building with the sign 'Annabelle’s Inn' hanging on it. “Maybe we can find somethin' out.”

They both dismounted Norris and McClintock tied the reins to a post outside. She whinnied, in concern maybe and he shushed her. Then, he went to her saddlebag to pocket his gun, he didn’t know why, but he had a feeling he might need it. He turned back to see Ricky waiting for him by the entrance to the inn.

They entered together, throwing open the doors and allowing light to filter in behind them. Empty chairs and tables greeted them at the entrance, while a bar took up space in the back corner. At said bar, a bartender looked in their direction and where they were previously lazily drooped over the counter they suddenly lit up.

“Sheriff Bergara?!” They exclaimed in surprise. Ricky (?) then jumped in surprise himself. The bartender was a young woman with long blonde hair and she was practically about to jump over the bar in surprise.

“Howdy, Kelsey. Okay uh, yep. Sheriff Bergara here.” He looked extremely nervous now, eyes darting between the bartender Kelsey and McClintock.

“Bergara?” He questioned. Huh, he didn’t give McClintock his real name. Not like he gave him his either-

“Madej?” Someone else called out. He snapped to face them and saw sitting by a piano at the very back of the inn-

“Rubin?!” He shouted in surprise.

“Madej??” Ricky (?) shot back at him.

“Sheriff Bergara!” Rubin continued as she saw the man standing next to him. Okay, definitely not Ricky Goldsworth.

“Wait stop.” The sheriff’s hands shot out in a placating manner, though his face still looked frantic. “What happened while I was gone? Where is everyone?”  
  
Kelsey perked up, “when you went off on your suicide mission, that gang came back and said they killed you! Brought your horse and everything!”

“So everyone’s been on edge ever since. Been waiting on another attack, or whatever they’ve got in store.” Rubin finished for Kelsey. “Glad to see you’re alive and well, though.”

“Haha, I’m happy to see you guys too but-”

“Where’d you find the fresh meat?” Kelsey pointed towards McClintock (?).

“He helped me out. Okay-”

“What are you doing here, Madej?!” Rubin stood up and approached Madej (?).

“Well uh-”

“How do you two know each other??”

“We’re acquaintances.” “Old friend.” They answered at the same time. He immediately glared at her.

“Ain’t you from over east, Rubin?” Bergara side eyed him, but said nothing. Rubin then finally caught on, her eyes widening while she stared at Madej.

“I moved around a lot.” Madej quickly interjected. Bergara still looked unsure.

“Not to interrupt, but before y’all continue this half-talk why don’t we all sit down.” Kelsey tried to smile, but it looked more like a grimace. “Y’all look exhausted.”

“We sure are.” Bergara immediately dropped onto a stool by the bar. Instead of following him, Madej and Rubin went to sit at a table by the piano.

“Haven’t seen you in years, Madej.”

“Think I’ve seen you?” He shot back and she smiled.

“Thanks-”

“You don’t have to say it again y’know. I already got an earful the last time.” He interrupted her, followed by a sigh. “Anyways, what brought you all the way out here?”

Her eyes glanced at the bartender, Kelsey chatting animatedly with the sheriff. “She did.” She responded with a smile.

Shane smiled too, “huh, she seems nice.”

“She is.” A red tint took to her cheeks and she rubbed the back of her neck. “What are _you_ doing with the sheriff?”

“He already said it, I helped save him. Saw the poor guy out on the desert lookin’ like shit.”

“Hot shit?” Rubin grinned at him, raising an eyebrow impishly.

“I’m not gonna comment on that.”  
  
Rubin laughed, “you’ve got a real big heart, Shane. It ought to be bigger than your brain at least.”  
  
“Ha ha, yuck it up. He’s insufferable.” Shane rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. But not without glancing at the sheriff in question.

“ _You’re_ insufferable.”

“You wound me.”

Across the room, a different conversation played out.

“Kels, I’m gonna need a lil somethin’ right about now.” Ryan dropped his face into his hands.  
  
“Comin’ right up sheriff,” Kelsey responded, grabbing an empty glass and wiping it down. “What happened out there?”  
  
“Oh y’know. I did the insane thing that is try to fight a bunch of gangsters alone.” He tried to keep casual, but instead his voice came out manic.

Kelsey shot him a sympathetic look before dropping a beer in front of him. “Usually I’d say this is a bit early for drinkin’ but you sound like you really need it, sheriff.”

“God, this is fucking insane. What do they want? Why didn’t they kill me out there?” He dropped his face into his hands again and tried to calm himself down to think think think.

“Maybe they didn’t wanna waste their energy?”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence there.”

“I try.”

He sighed.

“Kels, y’know anythin’ about the big guy back there?” Ryan pointed back at Madej (?) who was sat smiling with Rubin.

She shook her head, “I got nothin’ sheriff. Maybe he is just an old friend of Sara’s. If she trusts him, maybe he ain’t that bad. He saved you too didn’t he?”

“He’s just-” What were his motivations? Why did he save him? Why did he lie about his name? “Never mind. What’d I miss?”

“Not much other than what I said earlier. When they came to negotiate and whatnot, Scott was the one who stepped up and shoo’ed ‘em off.”

Their respective conversations were interrupted by the doors to the inn slamming open. Stood in the doorway were two men. They wore dark jackets and along the sleeve was a logo of sorts. A red arrow. They stood stock still surveying the bar until they stopped in their tracks when they locked eyes with Ryan.

“Well, if it ain’t Sheriff Bergara! If I didn’t know any better, I’d’ve thought I was talkin’ to a ghost,” one of them called out from the doorway.

“Gentlemen. Why don’t we sit down and have ourselves a little chat.”

“You lost the opportunity for a chat the moment you said no to our deal.”

His hand reached down to pull out a gun, but Ryan was faster. He immediately rolled away from the bar towards a table. He upturned it just as gunfire began to ring out. A hole made itself apparent in the wooden flooring near him, so he looked towards the other side of the room, to the piano, to see how Madej and Rubin were faring.

Shane was frozen in place. He saw the bright red arrow painted across their jackets’ sleeves. He knew those people. He knew this gang and they knew him. They wouldn’t have forgotten that-

“HEY!” Bergara called out to him. But it was too late, the two gangsters finally took notice of him and one of them pointed their gun towards Shane. Rubin was the one to drag him out of the line of fire and kick up a table for cover.

“Hey, whatever crisis you’re having, have it later!” Rubin held Shane’s face in her hands and he finally snapped out of it when a few more shots rang out. They were further away from the door now, he had no way to approach without ending up out in the open. He glanced at the sheriff and then at his holstered gun. Fuck it. He pulled it out and peaked over the top of the table to return fire.

Ryan watched as Madej began firing back, while the two gangsters were distracted by him, Ryan grabbed a nearby chair and threw it towards them. One of them stopped firing to block the incoming projectile and Ryan took it as the moment to hop over his cover and deck the guy in the face. He was pushed backwards, but he wasn’t out for the count yet. Ryan tried to grab the gun out of his hands, but he held tight.

The other man avoided the chair and immediately pointed his gun at the sheriff. Shane took aim and shot the man in his arm. He shouted in pain and dropped his gun. Bergara took notice, he kicked the guy he was wrestling in the crotch. He immediately let go of his gun. Ryan cocked it and aimed it at the other before they could pick up their own fallen gun.

The guy he kicked then recovered. He was about to lunge at Ryan, but before he could, Kelsey hopped over the bar and decked him so hard he stumbled all the way out of the inn. Followed by a loud “whoop!” from Kelsey herself.

The other man had their hands in the air, as Ryan growled, “get out.”

Ryan flicked his gun towards the door. They complied and turned around to walk out of the inn. Shane and Rubin moved out of their own cover towards the others. Rubin picked up the fallen gun, while Shane followed the sheriff out of the inn.

Both of the gangsters were now outside and Ryan noticed their horses by Norris. He followed them onto the road and nodded towards their horses. “Get out of here.”

They both untied their horses’ reins and got on. Shane was standing back by the inn's entrance, but he was pointing his own gun towards them as well. “Tell whoever your boss is to never come back.”

“Gotcha.”

Ryan heard the cocking of a gun behind him. He turned on his heel, right as a bullet whizzed by his head.

“That was a warning shot.” Stood in the middle of the road was another man. He wore a similar jacket to those of the gangsters, except his was a coat. He had hair tied back into a small ponytail and a mask to cover his eyes. Strangely, if not unsettlingly, he had a serene smile on his face.

The sun was high above them as they stared each other down. The other man already had his gun pointed at Ryan, while his own hung limply in his hand. He feared that if he moved it at all, it’d be the end of him.

Until a bullet embedded itself in the ground next to the gangster. Ryan glanced back to see Madej had shot it.

There was a pregnant pause.

A spark of recognition passed over the man’s eyes as he glanced at Shane. Who simply held his gun tighter, correcting his aim at the man. His serene smile then dropped.

“I know when I’m beat,” the other man said as he expertly holstered his gun, but he made no move to actually leave. That is, until Ryan heard the sound of hooves behind him. The two men from before raced in his direction. Ryan braced himself, but they simply went past him. He watched as one of them picked up the man who he was having a stand-off with and they all disappeared into the scorching desert.

Kelsey burst out of the inn, “are you guys okay? What happened to ‘em?”

Ryan sighed, “I let ‘em off with a warning.”

“More like they got away scott free,” Shane interjected, holstering his own gun.

“Excuse me?”

Shane scoffed, “what? They’re just gonna come back again!”

Ryan didn’t respond to that. (He knew something.)

“Kels, I’m gonna head to the station.” Ryan looked pointedly at Shane. “And _you’re_ coming with me.”

Shane and Sara shared one last look with each other, before he turned to follow the sheriff. Their walk to the station was spent in silence. The building they approached was small, but imposing. It shared the same energy of any lawmaker worth their shit. When they entered, he noticed a board with wanted signs by the door, as well as a desk littered with papers. Taxes probably.

“Bergara.” Ryan’s face snapped towards the voice to find an older man coming out of a backroom holding a few documents in his hands. He looked surprised. “You’re back.”

“Jobblet- sir!” Ryan immediately tensed up in this guy’s presence. He straightened himself out and glared at Shane to do the same. “What are you doing here?”

“I was just picking up some things I left.” He motioned towards the documents in his hands, then moved past Ryan. “You take care of that badge now.”

“I- yes, of course sir.” The moment the other man exit the building, Ryan practically collapsed at the desk.

Shane cleared his throat, “who-”

“Sit.” Ryan motioned towards a nearby chair. “Unimportant. Now, who are _you_?”

“I could ask you the same thing.” Shane feigned confidence, but Ryan didn’t concede.

“You’re in no position to,” he shot back, puffing his chest out in an attempt to intimidate. His sheriff’s badge glinted in the light.  
  
Shane sighed, “Shane Madej. You?”

“Sheriff Ryan Bergara.” Ryan responded matter of factly. He was in full sheriff mode now that they were back in town. “Madej, I’m going to let the fact that you lied to a government official go, because you saved me out there. But, I also saved your ass here.”

“Rubin did actually.”

Ryan glared at him. “I saw you freeze up. You wouldn’t know how to dodge a bullet that wasn’t even aimed at you.”

“Ha ha.” His voice was devoid of emotion.

“What do you know?” Ryan then asked, cutting straight to the point.

“What?”

“You froze up, you knew them.” He pointed to the wanted posters on the board. “Spill.”

Shane turned around and saw the one he was pointing at. It was the masked man they had encountered earlier. He had the same serene smile and beneath it was titled ‘Wally Gotcha’. Next to it was an insignia, a red arrow and a quiver aptly titled ‘The Buzzards’.

“He’s just... somebody that I used to know. He’s the head honcho of a gang called The Buzzards. I recognized their insignia when they walked in. They’re pretty fuckin’ notorious for taking over small towns and wrecking shit.”

Ryan rolled his eyes, he already knew all that. “Do you know how to beat ‘em?”

“You still trust me?” Shane asked, he tried to hide his surprise but it slipped out.

“I trust you know a lot more about ‘em than I do.”

Shane smiled at that. “Well, you got a map?”

Ryan walked off to some backroom. Shane waited, looking around. He glanced back at the wanted poster board and his blood ran cold.

Right beneath where ‘Wally’ was posted, was a picture of himself. ‘The Railroader’ was written in large bold. Wanted dead or alive. But the drawing on the poster had his face covered by his now ruined bandana and a much less wrecked version of his currently wrecked hat. He hoped he wasn’t recognizable without his old get-up.

Soon enough, Ryan returned.

“They’re pretty persistent. Which means they probably have to have a hideout nearby.” Ryan explained, stacking the papers on his desk to make room for the map. He flattened it out and nodded at it.

They scanned the map, Shane pointed to a town nearby. “Maybe they’re coming from here.”

“No way.” Ryan shook his head, “they’d have to be a lot closer with how frequently they’re attacking.”

“Tell me, how often have they been pestering you?” He side-eyed the sheriff.

“Every other day now, really.”

“And they also managed to catch you unaware.”

That made Ryan blink a few times, as if Shane had shed a new light. “Are you- are you saying they’ve been watching us?”

Shane shrugged, “sure seems like it.”

“But… why?”

“That just means they think this town is worth something," Shane murmured, lost in thought. “But- no offence -I haven’t seen anythin’ worth shit 'round here.”

“Eh, some taken.” Ryan scanned the map again, Shane looked closely at the other man’s features. His eyes were scanning the map diligently and a crease on his forehead showed how frustrated he was, even in thought. Shane watched as the other man opened his mouth to say something, but closed it again. Why was he watching his mouth anyways?

“Spit it out.”

“What?”

“You were gonna say somethin’ weren’t you?” Shane raised an eyebrow at the sheriff and the other man looked away sheepishly.

“It’s crazy-” he dismissed himself, but Ryan saw the earnest look in the other man’s eyes. Shane looked determined, so he steeled himself as well. “Okay, there used to be some mines a little ways north of here.” He pointed it out on the map. “They dried up though and haven’t been in use for… fuck, decades now, probably.”

“Why would they hang out in some mines?”

Shane was right, there really wasn’t anything worth much in this town. Especially to warrant them staying in some abandoned mines just to- wait. “They must’ve found something.”

“Something worth bugging your town about.” Shane raised his eyebrows and nodded along, “You’ve got something in that tiny head of yours after all, sheriff.”

“Yeah yeah, at least I’ve got something.” Ryan’s grin betrayed his words, as he looked at the taller man with palpable excitement. “Turns out, all that big head of yours is good for is gettin’ shot at.”

“Hey, I helped out quite a bit there.”

“Whatever helps you sleep at night, Madej.” Caught up in the moment, their faces were inches away from each other. They’re both panting a little bit from the brainstorming and Ryan is the first to pull back.

“But how did they find the mines in the first place?” Ryan continued moving away from Shane. He didn’t realize they’d gotten so close, he looked back down at the map in an attempt to hide his flushed face. Shane simply shrugged.

“Maybe they did just stumble into it, like,” Shane mimed someone falling, then looking around with wide eyes,“oh shit, gold!”

“What- you- you don’t just trip and fall into a pile of gold!” Ryan couldn’t stop himself from laughing at Shane’s antics. Shane laughed as well and he found himself wishing the other man laughed more often.

“Well, why don’t we ask them ourselves?” A sly grin made its way onto Shane’s face and Ryan couldn’t stop himself from staring at the mischievous expression. A shy smile appeared on his own as he ripped his eyes away from the taller man.

“All right, get Norris ready. I’m grabbing some stuff we might need.” He felt himself flush even more and hoped hoped hoped it was from the heat of noon outside. “I hope she doesn’t mind me riding with you again.”

Shane snapped his fingers, “oh yeah, your horse.”

“They probably still have her,” he quickly added, as if there would be some other reason he wanted to ride with Shane. “You good with that… Shane?”

Hearing his first name coming from Ryan felt like an explosion of warmth. It spread through his whole body and he couldn’t help but lick his lips. The way he’d said it, it was unsure, but determined.

“Yeah… Ryan. Uh, sheriff- sir.”

Shane watched as the other man left for the back of the sheriff’s office with a soft smile to gather their supposed supplies. He looked back at the wall mounted with wanted posters and stared back at his own eyes.

Dead or alive. Yeah, he could live with that.


	3. The Mines

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shane and Ryan head out to save a horse

The air had significantly cooled down as Shane and Ryan rode towards a suspected gang lair. It would take a few hours, especially at the pace they were going at. It was likely they’d get there by nightfall. But once they got there… actually, Ryan didn’t know what they were gonna do once they got there.

Shane felt Ryan grip tightly at his shoulders. Was he scared? He wouldn’t blame the guy.

“You thinkin’ about something sheriff?”  
  
Ryan didn’t respond at first, ever patient, Shane stayed quiet. “Okay, I was wondering why they didn’t just kill me.”  
  
“Well, I ain’t gonna pretend I know why. But maybe it was ‘cause it’d be too much trouble?”

“I’d say I was good as dead out there.”  
  
“Hey,” he chastised, “I meant, you’re a government official and all or whatever.”

Ryan hummed, thinking. “So I could have like, run off and reported them if they kept me alive.”  
  
“You didn’t run off when they left you out in the desert.” Ryan grumbled in response to that. “What do you think, detective?”

“Were… hmm, were they planning on using me? Like... to keep the law off their backs!” Ryan exclaimed in surprise. “Maybe even help persuade the other townspeople.”

“Exactly.” Shane was gonna say that they probably just didn’t want to deal with paperwork.

“You weren’t gonna say that.”  
  
“You don’t know that.” He couldn’t stop himself from chuckling, he could even feel Ryan shake with mirth. He’s glad he helped calm the other man’s nerves. Then, Ryan rested his forehead on his shoulder. He felt extremely warm suddenly and he was thankful that Ryan couldn’t see his face.

Unbeknownst to Shane, Ryan’s face was as red as his. Hence, him hiding his face in Shane’s shoulder. They were so close to each other sharing the saddle on Norris’s back. Ryan felt like he was on fire, it hadn’t been like this when they first rode together. They were just two dudes on a horse. How different was then and now?

“Hey,” Shane broke him out of his second reverie now. He didn’t realize he was gripping Shane’s shoulders so tightly and quickly pulled away. Or at least, as far away as he could while sharing a saddle. “You sure you’re up to this?”  
  
“Sorry, I- yeah. I’m- I’m good.” He took a deep breath to try and calm himself down. He watched as Shane glanced back at him.

Shane didn’t press, turning back ahead of them. “It’s okay if you’re scared.”  
  
“You don’t mean that.” Ryan sighed. Shane was looking away, but he could hear the wry smile on the man’s face.

“I don’t.” He sighed too, “but we’re going into dangerous territory and being scared is normal.”  
  
“You aren’t scared.” Why? But he kept that quiet. Shane must’ve connected the dots though.

“Not for myself.” And for once, Ryan felt that he was telling the truth. Perhaps not the full truth, Shane seemed like the guarded kind of guy. But this crack was enough to pacify any further doubts. Maybe one day he’d break the walls down, but now wasn’t the time for a heart-to-heart.

Not long after their conversation puttered out, Shane stopped Norris in her tracks by an outcrop. Ryan looked over his shoulder to see the dip in the earth, signifying a natural valley. Light shone up from within it, meaning there were people. Shane dismounted and so, Ryan followed his lead.

“We’ll be right back, girl. You’ll be safe here.” Norris huffed softly and Shane shushed her. Ryan turned away to survey their surroundings, as well as give him some semblance of privacy while he talked to his horse. He crouched down by the edge of the valley and saw the entrance to the mines. It was dug into the side of said valley and a few lanterns shone brightly around it. He didn’t see any guards or lookouts. Strange.

He sighed as Shane sidled up to him. Without prompting, he said “I wonder if my horse is okay.”

“It’d be kind of a dick move to kill your horse.”

Ryan exhaled strongly, “They’re well-known dicks. I wouldn’t put it past them.”

“What’s your horse’s name?” Shane asked idly, as Ryan moved ahead of him to look for a way down towards the mines. When he spotted a dug out path downwards, he motioned for Shane to follow.

“Holly,” He answered, dropping his voice to a whisper, "smartest horse I’ve ever met. She’s just… a little skittish.”

Shane chuckled softly, following Ryan down into the natural quarry. “A little?”

“I don’t blame her for throwing me off, if I was a horse I’d’ve done the same.”

“Wow, remind me not to ride you.” The words slipped out before Shane could even think about them. “Wait that came out wrong.”  
  
Ryan stared at him with an absolutely incredulous, but unreadable expression on his face. He quickly shook it off though, eyes returning to the path ahead. “Yeah, tell me about it.”

A very awkward and obvious silence permeated the air around them as they finally reached the entrance to the mines. It was quite large, unlike your typical mine. The wooden support beams were obviously old and the mine cart tracks were nearly invisible beneath sand. High above them, a few birds cawed. Ryan hoped it wasn’t an omen.

“That was easier than expected.” Nice save, Ryan. He glanced at Shane to see if he was still being weird about it and noticed an uncharacteristically deep frown on the man’s face.

“This isn’t the hard part.” He said without looking at Ryan. The way he stated it felt like a punch in the gut to him. Fear prickled at the back of his neck and he wiped sweat off his brow. He didn’t realize he was this scared. He took a deep breath.

Ryan picked up one of the many lanterns scattered around, “All right, let’s head in I guess.”

Shane raised an eyebrow at him, “Aren’t we supposed to be stealthy?”

“I’m not gonna walk into- into there without light!” Ryan whisper shouted and Shane squinted at him.

“You afraid of the dark?”

“No," He answered, putting the lantern back down. “Maybe of the things in the dark though.”

Shane smiled at the confession, “Like rider like horse.”

“Shut up.” But there wasn’t any malice behind it.

“Don’t worry, Ry. I’ve got your back.”

The words were comforting and Ryan the nickname sent a shiver down his spine. And so, he steeled himself. He looked at Shane, who was still staring into the darkness with trepidation. With the sun having long set behind them, they stepped into the mines.

In the mines, the cold desert winds no longer howled. Instead, it was unnaturally quiet, sans the sound of voices ahead of them. He looked through the darkness towards Shane. The other man was already moving ahead of him, footsteps near silent. With his tall frame crouched down, it looked quite strange but endearing.

As his thoughts wandered, it was all the distraction needed before he felt something bash him in the back of the head. As he fell to the ground with a loud thump, the last thing he saw before everything faded away, was Shane turn around and look at him with horror.

The things in the dark might be a lot more real than he bargained for.

When Ryan slowly came to, it felt like he’d just blinked and suddenly he was somewhere else. He was lying face down on the ground. There was loud chatter all around him, but the ringing in his ears didn’t let him properly hear or understand any of it. Oh, it wasn’t just his ears that were ringing. The back of his head throbbed painfully and he found it difficult to focus.

He kept quiet, closed his eyes and evened out his breathing. He needed to get a grip of himself and his surroundings. Fast. He tried moving his arms and found them bound behind his back. That’s bad. His legs weren’t bound though, but this was an awkward position to try and get back up from.

“He’s awake, boss.” Someone announced. Fuck, he thought he was being subtle. But he’d already proven that subtle wasn’t his strong suit just a few minutes ago.

Then, someone roughly grabbed him by the back collar of his shirt and pulled him up. They sat him down on his heels and held him there. Slowly, he blinked his eyes properly open. He wasn’t in that hallway from earlier, it was more room shaped. Though from the looks of it, they were deeper into the mines. This was probably some sort of place to rest then.

“Well well, sheriff Bergara. Nice to finally make your acquaintance. The name’s Wouter de Backer. Though you probably know me as Wally.” A pleasant voice sounded out. He focused on the man stood right in front of him. He made out the familiar shape of a long dark overcoat and that of a red arrow following the sleeve. “Come here often?”  
  
Ryan spat at the ground in front of him. “Fuck. You.”

Wally de Backer had the audacity to smile at that. “Now, that ain’t the way to talk to someone who’s got you captive, sheriff.”

“Kill me then.” He spat back, “I know you won’t.”

“And why would you think that?”  
  
“You need me.”

After his statement, there was a pause. Then, there was laughter. An abrupt roar, a cacophony so unexpected that it actually stunned him. Why were they laughing? Was he wrong? Why else would-

“We don’t need you Sheriff Bergara. Why would anyone?” Wally taunted. “The only reason you aren’t dead right now, is him.”

Out from the crowd stepped a familiar man.

“Old Sheriff Jobblet..?” Ryan managed to breathe out.

“New Sheriff Bergara,” He said curtly, his thick eyebrows knitted together in worry. At least he had the decency to look a little guilty. “So you’re alright.”  
  
“What in- what the fuck? You? You’re with them?!”  
  
“It was a good deal, Son. I didn’t want any a y’all gettin’ hurt and this is how I’m doing it. We’ll all finally be blessed with some peace and quiet as long as we let these Buzzards here take over town and the mines!” He smiled down at Ryan, as if everything he said wasn’t utter and complete bullshit.

“This has got to be illegal.” He stared up at the man, the sheriff he looked up to when he was younger. The one who _had_ the town in his best interest. Was _this_ why he stepped down?

“Not with these it isn’t!” Wally waved a stack of documents in the air, a grin on his face. “Law’s the law, boy.”

Wally then handed the documents over to Jobblet, presumably to fill up and officiate. Ryan called after him, “Wait! Jobblet! Stop!”

But the man ignored him and left the room. As Ryan watched Jobblet disappear behind a corner, something connected with the side of his face. It’s a kick, he realized belatedly and it certainly didn’t help with the pounding in the back of his head.

“Just ‘cause he didn’t want us to kill you, don’t mean we ain’t gonna rough you up a bit,” Wally clarified for presumably no reason other than to piss him off. He stepped forwards and picked Ryan up by the collar.

He took this as a chance to steady himself on his untied feet and headbutt Wally in the face. The man let go, cursing, but before Ryan could do anything else he was quickly overpowered by the amount of other people in the room. They kicked his legs out from under him and once he was on the ground, they ganged up on him. It’s the second time they’ve beaten him up so far and he quietly hoped there wouldn’t be a third.

“Stop! Don’t- don’t fucking touch him!” A voice cut through the room, though from how hoarse it sounded, Ryan assumed he might’ve missed it a few times before. They didn’t stop in their onslaught, but the voice continued to beg them to.

It was Shane.

“Listen to ‘im boys.” Wally finally called out, though there was a hint of something Ryan couldn’t place in his voice. Slowly, they stopped kicking Ryan around. He looked up from his position lying on his side… and saw Shane.

He was being held back by someone surprisingly taller than him. But that someone’s face looked pretty recently beat up and a flare of pride passed over him. Shane though, looked miserable with a black eye and a couple of bruises on his face. And… there were tears in his eyes.

“Well, looks like the damn lawmaker softened you up Madej.” Wally dragged Ryan back to his previous sitting position. “Oh, I forgot! I haven’t thanked you for bringing him here.”

“De Backer, what-” Shane started to say, he was staring at Wally.

“Oooh, have you already forgotten? You wound me, Madej.” Wally held Ryan’s face by his cheeks and faced him towards Shane.

“Shane?” He’s looking at Ryan and fuck, he looked terrified.

“First name basis! Goodness Madej how you’ve slipped.” Wally laughed, letting Ryan’s head drop. He clapped his hands together, “I was just about to forgive you for stealin’ from us.”

Shane was silent, but Ryan watched as his eyes widened. When he saw Ryan staring, he immediately looked away from Wally. Ryan couldn’t help but ask, “steal?”

“Why don’t you tell your little friend here about your debt to us, Madej?” Wally motioned something and the guy holding Shane brought him forwards. He proceeded to drop him in front of Ryan.

“Ryan, this isn’t-”  
  
Someone from the crowd kicked Shane to the ground. “Just tell him, Madej!”

“Liar!” “Thief!” “Traitor!” Among other things were shouted at the man in front of him.

“I’m sure you’ve heard of him sheriff.” Wally was stood behind Ryan now and he leaned down to stage-whisper in his ear,

“Everyone’s heard of The Railroader.”

“You’re lying.” Ryan said, voice as steady as he could keep it, “they’re lying, aren’t they?”  
  
Shane’s silence is the answer he received.

“That- that can’t be right.”

“Say, what did The Railroader do sheriff?” Wally prompted. Shane looked up at Ryan, an unreadable expression on his face.

“The Railroader?” Ryan chuckled nervously, fear palpable in his voice, eyes never leaving Shane, “they’ve got to be kidding.”

Shane didn’t respond, instead, he looked away.

“The Railroader is a thief,” he started, he needed to see Shane refute his words. They had to be lying.

“Many cases of grand theft and heist have been attributed to him.” Shane didn’t even look at him as he continued, eyes vacant.

“His most infamous crime, was when he hijacked a train.” Shane stayed unresponsive, listening silently as Ryan continued.

“He caused it to go off the rails.” A pained expression actually passed over Shane that time.

“It was carryin’ almost five grand worth of money.” A few boos from the crowd.

“All of it was gone by the time anyone else arrived.”

“We helped him get in there!” Someone from the crowd shouted.“He stole from right under our noses!” “It was our hit!” “We were supposed to share the loot!” 

“Liar!” “Thief!” “Traitor!” Among other things were shouted at the man in front of him and guilt ripped through Ryan, as he felt himself connect those words to Shane.

Throughout all the abuse being thrown around, Shane stayed silent. He didn’t even try to get up from his prone position. His eyes finally locked with Ryan’s and he begged begged begged for Shane to say anything, to argue that he didn’t do it. Hell, at least say _why_ he did it.

But nothing.

The roar of the angry crowd was drowned out by the roar inside of Ryan’s head. It felt as if only the two of them were there, having a staring contest. A silent conversation that lasted an eternity, in the blink of an eye. But Shane was a brick wall and no matter how hard Ryan tried to get through it with his honesty, his belief in the man, Shane barely gave him anything back.

And it was still the same now.

“Well, sheriff.” Wally brought him back into the present by grabbing him by his jaw. He faced the other man straight on, the serene smile on his face was still there. “If you’d like to live, you will listen to us.”

Ryan gulped... and then nodded.

“Good! Wonderful! This is how everyone should be, honestly.” De Backer stood straight and motioned for something behind Ryan. He’s lifted up onto his feet, but held back by someone. “Now, you’re going to return to that little town of yours and announce that The Buzzards will be running everything from now on. You do that and we won't hurt a single soul."

Ryan glanced behind Wally. Shane was staring back at him. Finally, he opened his mouth, "Y-you can't trust them Ry."

  
  
  
  


"How can I trust you?"

Ryan nodded again.

"Wonderful! Take him to his horse and make sure he leaves." Wally did a shooing motion and the person that held Ryan in place shoved him forwards. They left the room at a brisk pace, de Backer watching the whole time.

Then, he turned back to Shane. "You can go at him boys. Just make sure he stays alive, I call dibs on the last shot."

Shane was lying on the ground. He had no idea how long it’s been since Ryan left and he was beaten ‘til he blacked out. He couldn’t remember much, maybe that was for the best. No one seemed to have cared enough to even move him from where they were previously.

Now though, the room was dark. The lanterns had either been turned off, or taken somewhere else completely. It was likely that it was the dead of night now, but it was hard to tell from being inside the mines.

“You can’t do that! We- we had a deal!” Someone shouted. Shane listened closely. It sounded like the heat of an argument.

“We can’t guarantee that sheriff is gonna listen to us,” That was Wally, Shane could recognize him. “We’ll just be guaranteeing our success.”

“You do that and- and…. And I quit! The deal is off!”

“Fine by me.”

“W-what?”

There was the sound of a gun being cocked.

“You already gave us the documents we need, Jobblet.”  
  
“W-wait! I- I could… I could keep the town in line! I- I can keep the law off your backs-”

“You think you’re the only official in our pockets?” He laughed, “Pathetic.”

A gunshot.

“Every single one a you’s here!” Wally shouted, “Get your guns! Get your horses! We’re storming that town come dawn!”  
  
There was a loud ruckus that followed and people flooded through the halls to get to stations, supplies. Some stepped over Shane just to kick him a bit, as if they didn’t already have their fill. Soon enough, the ruckus was further away from him. It was oddly quiet, only the occasional passerby. Were the weapons deeper in? He didn’t see any horses when he entered either, maybe they were somewhere outside. A different base.

“Madej,”

He was so lost in thought, the sound of his name almost made him jump. His back was to the entrance of the room and this person cast a shadow over him. He stayed silent.

“It’s me, man.” The person repeated and they walked around him. Then, they crouched down so Shane could see their face.

“Ilnyckyj?” The man in question smiled softly, before helping Shane sit up. “Fuck, man.”  
  
“Fuck is right, you look like shit.”

He rolled his eyes, “Were you gonna help me or not?”  
  
Ilnyckyj walked behind him and proceeded to cut the ropes binding Shane’s hands. He brought them in front of him and rubbed at the burns. Ilnyckyj helped Shane stand up and he immediately stumbled. Though the man was much shorter than him, he slung Shane’s arm around his shoulder. They walked together towards the hallway.

It was nearly deserted and the only noise came from the two of them walking. “Where’d everyone go?”

“All the important stuff is deeper in. Well, the weapons at least.” Andrew threw a quick glance behind them, before walking a bit faster. “Horses are at an outcropping further north.”

“Huh,” was all Shane could say. “How- uh, how’ve you been?”  
  
“Same old, same old,” he replied, though he kept his eyes facing forwards. “You?”  
  
“Oh y’know how it is, nowadays it’s not just the law I’m runnin’ from though. You guys have been a pain in the ass.”  
  
Ilnyckyj smiled at that, but looked away sheepishly, “Yeah, sorry.”  
  
“You’re better than this ‘Drew. C’mon, you know that.” The old nickname slipped out, but Andrew didn’t seem bothered in the slightest. “You’re gonna get in trouble for this.”

“It’s fine. You know I can’t. Once you’re in you can’t get out.”  
  
“I got out.”  
  
He snorted, “You call this out?”

They reached the exit to the mines unspotted and Andrew looked around. It was dark and moonlight was thin. Even so, he decided against picking a lantern up. “Where’s your horse?”

“Uh, an outcrop south. You mind..?”  
  
“Nah, we can talk while we’re at it.”

Andrew helped Shane climb out of the valley, though it took a lot of stumbling through the dark and quiet cursing. The strange familiarity of it tugged at Shane’s heart, but he needed to keep his act together.

“Why aren’t there any lookouts?”  
  
Andrew pointed upwards, to the sky. There were a few birds circling the valley, “They keep us notified.”  
  
“Hell, I didn’t know y’all had actual buzzards.”  
  
“We don’t,” He responded, smiling softly. “We just got lucky… I guess.”

They reached the outcrop and Shane breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Norris safe and sound. She whinnied when she saw him and he ran his fingers through her mane. He cooed at her, uncaring of the fact that Andrew was still awkwardly holding him up.

When he did get a grip on himself, he cleared his throat. “You uh, sure you don’t wanna leave? I really don’t want to have to fight you or somethin’.”

“Yeah, I am. I’ll be fine, Madej.”  
  
“Good luck, ‘Drew. Stay safe. I.. really don’t wanna see you tomorrow.”  
  
He breathed out a laugh, “You too.”  
  
He got onto the horse, “Oh and uh, if you see Byrne, tell him I’m sorry for,” Shane motioned towards his own face and Andrew snorted.

“Will do.”

With a deep breath, in the dead of night, Shane rode southbound towards town.


	4. The Showdown

Ryan couldn’t sleep. He’d reached town in the dead of night and promptly decided to crash at the sheriff’s office. Holly was ‘round the back side of the station getting her fill and he was glad to finally have his horse back. But, he couldn’t sleep.

The back of his head didn’t hurt as much anymore, though his body ached everywhere. He drank half a bottle of scotch, but sleep still didn’t come. He rolled over to his side, his bed in the station wasn’t the most comfortable, but he couldn’t care less right now. His eyes locked onto a familiar face on the wanted board. How didn’t he realize? How-

Okay, nope. He closed his eyes. Not gonna acknowledge that right now.

His mind wandered, wondered, what was going to happen now? He couldn’t let the gang take over town, but he had no idea what they were going to do next. Fucking, sheriff Jobblet was on their side! And-

Nope, not even gonna think about him.

He sighed and turned to stare up at the ceiling. The wood was old and kind of moldy.

He wasn’t sure how much time had passed, when he heard Holly whinny loudly. He shot out of bed, stopping for a moment to let vertigo pass, before grabbing his shotgun from the wall and heading out the backdoor.

The lantern by the backdoor was alight and Ryan squinted into the darkness. He made out the figure of someone on a horse. They approached tentatively, Holly snorted and stomped the ground. They dismounted and-

“You,” Ryan called out softly as his eyes locked with Shane’s. A harsh wind blew past them and the desert night never felt colder. He looked… small against the expanse behind him and rough to say the least. But he couldn’t let his sympathy, his emotions get the better of him. Not again.

“Ry-”

“Shut the fuck up.” He cocked the shotgun and aimed it at Shane. This man lied to him. This man will betray him. He can’t trust him. (He saved him, his brain helpfully supplied.) “You lost the fucking right to call me that.”

He looked, scared. Eyes wide, mouth open, body tense. He raised his hands in surrender. Slowly, Shane began walking forwards. “Fuck, just, please. Please listen to me.”

“What are you doing here?” His hands were shaking, but he kept his aim straight at Shane. Why was he struggling? The man in front of him was a wanted criminal. What was stopping him?! (Common sense was stopping him, his heart was-)

“They’re coming. The Buzzards,” He stated, eyes never leaving Ryan. His words hung in the air, “they’re gonna storm town come dawn. Everything they’ve got.”

“How-” Ryan gulped, his voice was unsteady. No matter how hard he willed it, it came out pained, “how can I trust you? You lied to me!”

“And you saw through every single one! I know you did! And you stayed.”

A beat passed.

“Get out of my sight.”  
  
A desperate look crossed Shane’s face. “Please-”  
  
“Get the fuck out of here before I shoot you.”  
  
Shane didn’t argue, didn’t fight back. He slowly stepped backwards and mounted Norris. He turned her around, towards the darkness beyond the lantern light. He took one look back, opened his mouth to say something, but closed it.

He looked away, his back to Ryan. “Ask Rubin.”

Then, he slinked off into the night. Leaving Ryan horribly, truly, alone. It was only then did he realize hot tears were streaming down his face. A pathetic groan made its way out of his throat and he couldn’t stop himself from sobbing right then and there. What the fuck was he thinking? Nothing made sense anymore. He let the shotgun dangle weakly to his side as tears continued to trail down his face and fall to the ground.

“Fuck,” He quietly muttered to himself, finally wiping them away. He needed to wake the town up. They needed to be ready if The Buzzards really were going to attack. He took a deep breath, then another. He walked back into the office and his eyes locked onto the wanted board.

He ripped off ‘The Railroader’s poster.

He walked out of the station, the town was quiet. Peaceful even, if not for the knowledge of an impending attack. Wind blew past him as he walked towards the center of town. There stood a two story building, townhall. But the important thing was that there was a bell right outside for emergencies. It was rarely used and Ryan felt a stab of anxiety for having to use it. But this was important, he had to do this.

“Wake the FUCK up, y’all!” He shouted, as he rung the bell. “This is an emergency!”

And wake up they did.

Mayor LeBlanc was quick to exit townhall and she was surprised to see Sheriff Bergara, incredibly beaten up, standing at the bell. Many others left their places of work and their homes with expressions of surprise and relief to see Ryan. Marchbank from the general store, Celestino from the stables, Joralmon, Scott, hell, the whole town was there. Though, it being a small town that was to be expected.

“Sheriff Bergara! You’re alive!” “What’s the emergency? What’s going on?” “You look like shit!” Ryan ignored the last comment as he climbed the steps up townhall to get everyone’s attention. He raised his hands in a placating manner and waited ‘til they quieted down.

“All right y’all. Remember The Buzzards?” He took a deep breath, as everyone looked at him with anticipation. “Dumb question, but I got some bad news. They’re coming, at dawn. And this time they ain’t takin’ no prisoners.”

Chatter immediately broke out as people started panicking and Ryan felt a pang of fear crawl up his spine. Okay, he needed to be calm and confident, for the people.

“Hey hey! Hold your horses. This is why I woke y’all up. When they do come, we’re gonna be ready for ‘em. We’re gonna show ‘em a piece of our mind!”

Cheers erupted this time and he breathed a sigh of relief. “All right, if you’ve got tables, chairs, anythin’! We’re gonna make a barricade facin’ north! Got that?”

“Anyone with a gun better be ready to fight! They’re gonna have a tonna firepower, so we’re gonna have to pick ‘em off ‘fore they reach the barricade.”

“There’s no shame if you can’t fight! Y’all just help with gettin’ ready, but come dawn y’all better hide in the cellars.”

After assigning the people to multiple stations around town, the gathering point was near empty. People were moving tables, chairs, desks and any piece of furniture that could be moved to become part of the barricade. Some were getting armed and even helping those who’ve never held a gun before in their lives get used to it. The town was truly alive for the first time in forever, even though the sun wasn't up yet and for a reason Ryan never would've fathomed.

Ryan watched from the steps up town hall, before sitting down and placing his head in his hands. Would this be enough? This has never happened before and he was just going off what he knew about how to deal with situations like these.

“Sheriff Bergara, you all right?” A voice cut through the air and he looked up to see Sara Rubin looking at him with concern in her eyes.

He shrugged as she sat down next to him, “honestly, no.”

“Thanks for puttin’ on a brave face there.” She smiled softly, then placed her hand on his shoulder. He sighed.

“Yeah.”

“Where’s Madej?” She asked and something must’ve shown on his face, because it was quickly followed by a quiet, “oh.”

“I don’t wanna talk about it.” He quickly said, looking away from her. Fuck, tears were already prickling at his eyes again.

“Well, would you mind if I did?” The smile on her face looked… sad now. He couldn’t trust his voice so, he nodded.

“Shane… is a good friend of mine. We’re friends because of his… occupation let’s say. A long time ago when I used to live further east, he stole from this huge estate in my town. Ever heard of the Bellaire house?”  
  
He nodded. He'd heard of the heist years ago, he balked at the numbers. Nearly two grand disappeared in a night.

“All that money he took? He gave it to us.” She looked off into the middle distance, lost to a memory. “He gave to the people who needed the money, to the soup houses, to orphanages, he gave to the workers there who didn’t get pay. He didn’t keep a single penny for himself.”

“I managed to get my pops outta debt, get medicine for my mom and even had some to spare thanks to him.”  
  
“But, someone found out. Someone spread the word and the Bellaire’s were… pissed is an understatement.” She laughed, but it was humorless. “They started goin’ after everyone Shane gave the money to. Jailed. Persecuted. Killed in their own homes.”

Tears were flowing down her face now, “that’s why I ran here. That’s why he never tells anyone what he does.”

“I got no clue about that Railroader incident, but I’d bet he was bein’ selfless again.”

Then, Rubin stood up. She didn't look at him when she spoke, staring into the distance with determination burning in her eyes. “Get some rest, sheriff. I think we’re all gonna need it.”

Ryan watched as Sara walked away towards the inn. He didn’t realize tears were streaming down his face again. Fuck, he quickly wiped them away. Now he didn’t know what to think. He wished he could go back and- what? Apologize? For what?! He didn’t know what to do.

He looked up towards the sky, it was still pitch black save for the stars and the moon. He sighed and got up to his feet. He cracked his neck, it’s now or never. He stepped down and worked on helping the townspeople prepare.

  


The moment the sky began to turn indigo, the town was tense. The barricade wall was ready and behind it were the able-bodied with guns. Those who could fight if need be. This included Ryan. He looked back towards the town, people were hiding within the buildings as well, prepared to ambush if they got through. A few people were stationed at the other edges in case The Buzzards planned on sneaking behind them.

Mayor LeBlanc stood by the bell, where at the first sign of trouble she’ll ring it. They locked eyes, even though they were quite a distance from each other and she nodded.

“Sheriff Bergara,” He looked to his side, Kelsey was looking at him with concern. Behind her, Marchbank and Celestino were silent, stoic. “You sure you wanna do this?”  
  
He shrugged, “If I don’t who will?”  
  
“If you say so,” She returned to looking over the barricade, though a strange expression passed over her face before she did. He decided to ignore it. He took a deep breath, then another. Now wasn’t the time to think, it was the time to act. Maybe he’d have time to process all this later. (Or maybe he'll die, who knows.)

The sound of the bell ringing snapped him out of his thoughts.

He looked up over the barricade and saw on the horizon, what felt like an entire cavalry headed straight for them. Okay no, deep breath, he looked again. It was probably a little less than 50, thank fuck, but still not good. They didn’t look like they were planning on stopping either.

“Take aim!” He shouted and everyone else at the barricades aimed their guns towards the approaching gangsters. They continued on their charge and for a moment, the town was silent save for the sound of the approaching horses. He took another deep breath, they needed to get into range before they shoot.

“Three!” Right at the head of the charge was Wally.

“Two!” He didn’t look surprised to see that they were prepared.

“One!” Ryan took a deep breath, briefly wondering how many of those he’d taken at this point.

“FIRE!” He screamed at the top of his lungs, as gunfire began. A few horses at the very front of the charge fell with their riders. This repeated a couple of times though some shots missed completely, but they continued their charge nonetheless. Then, a shout from behind him.

“They’re coming from behind!”

Okay, fuck. He just needed to focus on what was in front of him. He could trust the others to know what they were doing.

Wally’s charge reached the barricade, Ryan and the others at the front braced themselves against it as the riders jumped over their cover. While they jumped, He shot a couple rounds, causing a few more to fall from their steeds. (Was he a murderer now?)

Those who were hiding in the buildings poured out, shots ringing in the air.

Ryan got up and emptied a round into the nearest Buzzard. When they dropped to the ground, he ran for the nearest cover. He watched Celestino drop his gun and pull out a machete. He covered for the guy as he lunged at the nearest Buzzard. Quickly, he picked up the gun from the guy he felled, “Celestino!”  
  
The man looked up and caught the gun Ryan threw to him. With a quick nod, he shot the next person to try to come after him. Another gunshot rang out and he watched a body fall a few feet behind him. Marchbank nodded, his face steely as always, “watch yourself, sheriff.”

Ryan nodded back stiffly, as he began slinking towards town hall. There were horses without riders running rampant and The Buzzards seemed to use them as cover. He really pitied them, as he shot a man off his horse. (He's gonna throw up after this.)

A shot flew past him and he turned around to face someone reloading. Before they could finish the action, he kicked them in the gut sending them to the ground. He curb stomped them and picked up their gun.

As he looked around, he saw that there were less Buzzards than he expected. Relief quickly flooded through him, were they winning?

He lifted his gun and quickly shot a guy behind Kelsey. She didn’t pay it any mind, opting to pistol whip the guy in front of her onto the ground. Ryan moved back into the fray and punched a guy who was about to shoot at Rubin- wait what was she doing out here?

The street was littered with bodies, he observed as he wiped the sweat and blood off his face. (Was it his blood or someone else’s? He couldn’t decide which one was worse.) But he noticed less and less Buzzards. Hell, it looked like some of them were _running away_. An adrenaline fueled grin made its way onto his face.

Then, Ryan felt pain pain pain blossom in his right arm. He dropped his gun and grabbed at his arm with his left. Fuck, he was distracted. He spun around on his heels to see… Wally. His serene smile was missing, in its place was a furious expression as he reloaded his gun.

“Form up!” He shouted over the cacophony and Ryan watched in fear as the remaining Buzzards began to mount any of the remaining horses, while others simply stood their ground. He realized belatedly, that they surrounded him and Wally; They created a wall separating him from any help.

There were a few shouts of his name from outside the circle as de Backer stared Ryan down. It was as if there was only the two of them in the middle of the storm of running hooves and people. Time felt like it moved in slow motion as Ryan crouched to pick up his fallen gun, while de Backer aimed his own straight at the sheriff.

  


"Gotcha."

  
  


Someone tackled Ryan out of the way.

  
  


A shot rang out.

  
  


Working on adrenaline alone, from his position on his side, on the ground, he lifted his right arm ignoring the pain pain pain and shot de Backer. (How many people has he shot now?) Tears pricked at his eyes, but he watched the figure fall to the ground.

  


He held himself up with his left arm and looked back to where he was stood earlier.

  
  


There, on the ground, was Shane.

Ryan’s heart pounded in his ears as he crawled over to the other man. He ignored the pain as he pushed him onto his back and saw Shane's hands clutching his abdomen. Blood was pouring through his fingers. A lot of blood. Ryan held his head and laid it on his lap.

“Shane?” Ryan whispered and Shane’s eyes that were closed in pain fluttered open. A smile appeared on the man’s face as he looked up at Ryan.

“Hey there, sheriff.” His voice was weak, way too weak. The tears in Ryan’s eyes began to fall.

“What’re you- what the _fuck_ were you thinking?” He cried out, pulling the man closer to his chest, ignoring the pain in his right arm. “You- you fucking idiot! Y-you buffoon you-”

“Hey... you uh, kiss your mother with that mouth?” Shane had the audacity to laugh, to fucking _joke_ and it sounded so pained that Ryan felt his heart break in two.

“I’d like to kiss _you_ with it.” He whispered, leaning down to touch foreheads with Shane.  
  
“God, please do.”

They kissed. Both their lips were chapped and dry and Ryan could taste blood in Shane’s mouth. It also tasted salty, whether from sweat or tears he didn’t care. Frankly, it was gross, but finally being able to _kiss Shane_ felt _so_ _good_. He couldn't bring himself to care.

Ryan broke away for air, panting. “I- I’m so fuckin’ sorry. Shane- I-”

“It’s alright. It’s- it’s okay. Look, you- you did it.”

He looked up, looked around him. The wall of Buzzards that surrounded him was all but gone, deterred the moment their leader fell. He saw the fallen, the Buzzards on the ground and Wally, finally dead. He saw the townspeople, gathered around him and Shane. There was sorrow in their eyes, but along with it, was hope. Hope for the future.

“C’mon big guy. You- I-” He looked back down at Shane, his voice all choked up as he saw his serene expression, “I love you.”

A surprised expression made its way onto Shane’s face. Tears began to fall from his eyes as well. “I- yeah. Me too. I- I love you too.”

Ryan smiled through his tears and leaned down to kiss him one last time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wally got his dibs


	5. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ryan goes on a walk

Ryan whistled as he walked through town. The sun was past its peak and the temperature was cooling down. It was a busy day, the roads were crowded and people were everywhere. Though, nowadays every day was busier than the last.

Ever since he got de Backer (killed, his brain helpfully supplied. But he still didn’t want to think about that.), the news quickly spread and people flocked to town. The mines up north also brought in people looking for a fortune. New businesses constantly popped up and so far it hasn’t stopped yet. He sighed. It didn’t mean he had to like it though, he preferred it when the town was quiet.

He waved at a mister Lim and his unopened restaurant. He and Ilnyckyj seemed nice enough, though Lim’s city boy attitude tended to grate on Ryan quite a bit. Walking past them, Marchbank’s general store was busier than ever as he entered.

“Afternoon, sheriff.” The man called out from the counter, on his forehead was a new scar he received during the battle. “Taxes?”  
  
“You know it.” Ryan watched the other shoppers in the store as Marchbank ducked into the back. Ransome and Lytle were looking through the new face powders that’d come in. He also saw... Ruggirello by the candies. Okay, he still needed to work on remembering all the new permanent residents.

Marchbank came back out and handed Ryan an envelope. “Have a day, sheriff. You don’t want to bring anythin’ home?”

“Maybe later, Marchbank. How's Celestino?”

He shrugged, "better. I'll tell him you asked."

With a quick nod he exited the general store and almost ran into someone. He looked up and it was… Habersberger. “Oops, sorry sheriff.”

He just nodded and watched as the tall man walked past him into the store. Something tugged at his heart, but he ignored it. The tall man came here looking for riches along with his friends, they still weren’t sure if they were staying or not last time he asked. Didn’t mean he had to like them though, with the amount of trouble they seemed to get themselves into.

He quickly ducked into the next building, that being Annabelle’s Inn. It was crowded for the afternoon, but Kelsey immediately waved him over.

“Heya sheriff!” She smiled, handing over a drink to Velasquez before approaching him. She still had a limp in her step, but no one was able to stop her from working when she saw all the business coming to town. “Here ya go.”  
  
She quickly dug up a crumpled envelope from a pocket and dropped it in his hands. He snorted, “don’t want me to stick around, I see.”  
  
“Aw, no offense sheriff, but you’ve been pretty wound up with all the newcomers.”

Kelsey motioned outwards towards the room and she was right. He didn’t recognize half the people there. He felt a migraine begin to form and Kelsey must’ve noticed ‘cause she proceeded to push him away from the bar.

“Oh yeah, Sara said hi!” She called out as he left the inn, he just waved her off as an affirmative. Sara must still be healing. As he exited, he quickly jumped to the side to avoid some young boys running by.

"Watch where you're going!" He shouted after them, sighing.

A hand clapped his shoulder, "Sorry 'bout them Sheriff Bergara."

Scott smiled brightly at him, before she continued to run after the two troublemakers. She knew how to handle herself, so with a quiet chuckle he left her to it.

He passed by Chirico’s tailor shop and waved at her through the window. He’d already picked up her taxes earlier in the day, along with some new clothes she’d sewed together for him. Apparently it was because he’d already 'ruined' most of his old ones. He thought they were fine though.

Soon enough, he reached the station. He walked in and sighed, taking his hat off and placing it at his desk. He placed down the envelopes of money on there as well, he’d deal with that later. Mayor LeBlanc could wait 'til nightfall.

"I’m back!”

No response.

Ryan hummed in thought, shrugging off his overcoat and placing it as his chair. Was deputy Bennet out? He checked his bedroom, the backroom, even the small jail but there was no sign of anyone. Then, he heard the sound of talking, so he followed it out through the backdoor.

Holly immediately neighed when she spotted him, startling the person in front of her.

“What- oh, welcome back.”

Shane smiled as he saw Ryan. He was stood in front of Holly, his hands that were running through her mane moved to hold onto the fences that held the horses’ reins. Norris next to him sniffed at his face, making him laugh.

Ryan couldn’t stop himself as he sprinted over to Shane and lifted him into the air.

“Shit, fuck, watch the sides.” He groaned and Ryan quickly placed him back onto the ground.

He smiled sheepishly, “You’re standing! You- uh, you look better.”

“As if I didn’t always look this good, sheriff.” Shane smiled, before giving Ryan a quick kiss on his forehead.

“How were the ‘rounds?” Shane asked, turning back to pat Norris’s snout.

“The usual I guess? Sara said hi.” He shrugged and Shane laughed.

“Well, I haven’t gone out much,” Shane said, his eyes crinkling as he smiled. “Let’s head inside and you can spill the tea on all the new arrivals.”  
  
“Oh God, I’d love to.” Ryan picked Shane up bridal style as carefully as he could and the taller man’s protests died down as Ryan carried him inside. “Have I told you about Lim yet?”

If one looked closely enough, one could swear that the two horses outside looked to each other and rolled their eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gotcha! Thank you very much for reading!! This was the longest fic I've ever written to date. If you enjoyed, please leave a kudos or a comment! I really appreciate it. If you've got any questions I will try my best to answer them down below.


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